Lawsuit: Boulder discriminated against lesbian employee

A longtime employee of Boulder's Parks and Recreations Department says that a new supervisor targeted her after learning that she was a lesbian and that the city's human resources department did not protect her.

In a lawsuit filed in U.S. District Court earlier this month, Sally Dieterich, who served from 2007 to 2014 as assistant to the director of Parks and Recreation and secretary to the Parks and Recreation Advisory Board, said that positive performance reviews and a warm personal relationship with her supervisor turned sour after she served on a panel during LGBT ally training and after she shared that she had recently married her partner of 25 years.

Dieterich is alleging the city discriminated against her on the basis of sex and retaliated against her when she sought redress, in violation of federal civil rights law. The lawsuit also alleges violations of the Colorado Antidiscrimination Act. She is seeking unspecified damages for emotional distress, inconvenience and loss of enjoyment of life, as well as attorneys' fees.

Boulder spokeswoman Sarah Huntley said the city could not comment on litigation.

"The city values inclusivity and diversity but cannot comment on specific litigation involving employment matters," she said. "We will respond to these allegations through the legal process."

Advertisement

Dieterich was the assistant to previous director Kirk Kincannon from 2009 to 2014 and then served as the assistant to interim director Jeff Dillon, the parks superintendent, and to Yvette Bowden, who was hired as deputy director in 2014 and eventually chosen as the new director.

"In the first months of working together, Ms. Bowden frequently told Ms. Dieterich that they 'made a great team' and gave her high fives to express her appreciation," the lawsuit said. "Ms. Bowden even suggested that she and Ms. Dieterich open the shade covering the window between their offices so they could 'better connect.'"

That changed, the lawsuit alleges, in October 2014 when Ms. Dieterich was invited to serve on a panel during a training for department directors on being an ally to gay, lesbian and transgender employees.

Neither Dillon nor Bowden attended the training, the lawsuit said, and when Dieterich returned to the office and told Bowden it had gone well, Bowden responded with a "flat 'that's nice' and promptly left the office."

Excited about the success of the training, Dieterich told Bowden later that day that she had recently married her long-time female partner. According to the lawsuit, Bowden said nothing and quickly turned and walked away.

"From this point forward, Ms. Bowden and Ms. Dieterich's working relationship changed drastically," the lawsuit said. "Ms. Bowden was no longer warm towards Ms. Dieterich and began treating her differently from other city employees."

According to the lawsuit, Bowden asked Dieterich to stop assisting her and avoided eye contact.

Dieterich's difficulties soon extended beyond a chilly work environment. Within a month, she was accused of conspiring to steal gasoline from Fleet Services and placed on paid administrative leave. The lawsuit said that Bowden personally escorted Dieterich out of the office past her co-workers, causing unnecessary humiliation.

According a Boulder Police Department report about the alleged gas theft, Dieterich had inadvertently used an incorrect code to get gasoline and did not even know the Transportation Department employee with whom she was accused of conspiring. The charges were determined to be unfounded.

But when Dieterich returned to work in January 2015, she was moved to the front desk of the Iris Center instead of the private office she had used in the director's suite for the previous eight years.

The lawsuit said that Dieterich was berated about her posture, stripped of her purchasing duties and most of the duties related to being secretary of the Parks and Recreation Advisory Board. She was told to stop calling herself the assistant to the director, and at one point, she found her nameplate in her mailbox.

A sexual orientation discrimination complaint that Dieterich filed with the city's Human Resources department was determined to be unfounded, though in the lawsuit, Dieterich says no one was interviewed except Bowden.

When Dieterich took medical leave after being diagnosed with breast cancer, she received a termination letter, allegedly for failing to turn in the appropriate forms, though she said she had turned in the forms and provided evidence of having done so.

The Boulder alt-country band gives its EPs names such as Death and Resurrection, and its songs bear the mark of hard truths and sin. But the punk energy behind the playing, and the sense that it's all in good fun, make it OK to dance to a song like "Death." Full Story